Results tagged ‘ Washington Nationals ’
What to Watch for: 5.18.13
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Washington Nationals (23-19) vs. San Diego Padres (18-23)
RHP Jordan Zimmermann (7-1, 1.69) vs. LHP Eric Stults (3-3, 4.57)
The Nationals can guarantee a series win as they send Jordan Zimmermann to the hill in search of his league-high eighth victory. Washington has won eight of its last 10 against the Padres, including season-series wins in both 2011 and 2012.
NATIONALS LINEUP:
1. Span CF
2. Lombardozzi LF
3. Zimmerman 3B
4. LaRoche 1B
5. Desmond SS
6. Moore RF
7. Espinosa 2B
8. Suzuki C
9. Zimmermann RHP
ADAM BOMBS
Adam LaRoche has homered in three consecutive contests, pocketing a total of four home runs during that stretch. With a homer tonight, LaRoche would match his career high with a four-game homer streak, accomplished when he hit five over straight games from September 3-6 vs. the Chicago Cubs last season.
START ME UP
Washington’s starting pitchers have rolled off a string of eight consecutive starts yielding two or fewer earned runs. The rotation has posted a 1.94 ERA (11 ER/51.0 IP) and 3.0/1 strikeout-to-walk ratio (33 K/11 BB) during that stretch. For the season, Nationals starting pitchers rank second in the NL/MLB with a 3.13 ERA (90 ER/258.2 IP).
GOON SQUAD IS HEATING UP
Washington’s bench, affectionately know as the “Goon Squad,” has gone a combined 3-for-7 in the last three contests. Chad Tracy’s game-winning homer in the 10th inning on Friday marked both the first pinch-home run and pinch-RBI for the Nationals this season.
Father of the Goon Squad
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After making the Nationals as a non-roster invitee in 2012, Chad Tracy took no time at all to make his presence felt. On April 7 in Chicago, he came in with the bases loaded, one out, and the Nats down a run in the top of the eighth, and promptly doubled home a pair to lead the club to victory. Thus began the Goon Squad, Washington’s fearsome and versatile bench, with its leader, the veteran Tracy.
Just as he did early in 2012, Tracy provided the Goon Squad’s biggest moment to date on Friday night. After the Nationals surrendered a two-run lead in the ninth inning in San Diego, the tide seemed to have turned against them. But with two outs in the top of the 10th, Tracy turned on a hanging, 1-1 change-up out of the right hand of Huston Street, depositing it over the right field wall at Petco Park for a go-ahead home run to put the Nationals back ahead for good, 6-5.
An increasingly productive bench could be a sign of good things to come for the Nationals.
“He’s a really good hitter,” said Davey Johnson of Tracy. “Last year he started fast, this year he started slow. But (the home run) makes up for anything he’s done in the past.”
There is something about being at the right place at the right time that often defines success for a bench player like Tracy. But Friday night’s heroics were the continuation of a stunning trend, one which indicates the Padres are always the right opponent for the leader of the Goon Squad. With his blast off Street, each of Tracy’s last three pinch-homers have now come against the Padres. And of the seven he has hit in his career, five have come against San Diego.
Other Nationals like Adam LaRoche and Ryan Zimmerman have both hit well against the Padres in their careers as well, each notching double-digit home run totals. But both track records pale in comparison to Tracy’s.
Meanwhile, Drew Storen survived a Padres rally in the bottom of the frame to notch his first save of the season, and the Cardiac Nats won the kind of gut-wrenching game on which they built their reputation last season. After a couple of close calls in low-scoring games in Los Angeles, the breakthrough may have meant just one win, but it may also have opened the door for a return of the Cardiac Nats, the team that went 27-21 in one-run games and 13-7 in a league-high 20 extra-inning affairs in 2012. This year’s club (7-3, 2-1) hasn’t seen nearly as many of the same opportunities, but a strong showing from the Goon Squad may change that in a hurry.
Highlights: 5.17.13
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5.17.13 – Nationals 6, Padres 5 (10 innings)
Stat of the Game: Chad Tracy launched his first home run of the season, a pinch-blast in the 10th to lift Washington to a 6-5 victory.
Under-the-Radar Performance: Adam LaRoche‘s second two-homer game of the season and 21st of his career extended his hit streak to a career-best 14 games.
It Was Over When: Drew Storen stranded the tying run at third and winning run at first in the bottom of the 10th to lock down his first save of the year.
Kindred Spirits of Hustle
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As the Nationals arrived at Petco Park to begin their four-game set with the San Diego Padres on Thursday, a special visitor awaited them. Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel, the Texas A&M University quarterback, was in town for a training program with his personal coach and decided to drop by before the game.
Manziel and Harper chatted before Thursday’s game.
In addition to posing for a picture with fellow Aggie Davey Johnson, Manziel took batting practice with the Padres and appeared on the hometown broadcast that night. But Manziel was, in particular, also at this specific game for another reason: Bryce Harper.
Harper, who won the Golden Spikes Award in 2010 –baseball’s equivalent of the Heisman – had befriended the quarterback via Twitter. It’s only fitting that the two 20-year-olds got to know one another, considering that their all-out styles of play are what have put them in the national spotlight. Together, they are kindred spirits of hustle.
“You’re never going to see him not go all out,” said Manziel of Harper. “I play with my heart on my sleeve and he plays the same way.”
Of course, their paths to the top-ranked amateur players in their sports were wildly divergent. Several months after Harper found himself on the cover of Sports Illustrated dubbed “Baseball’s Chosen One,” Manziel was just beginning to turn heads as an undersized signal-caller at tiny Kerville-Tivy High School in central Texas. And while they are the same age, Manziel recognizes that he still has plenty of work ahead of him to ascend to Harper’s level on the professional stage.
“He’s at the top,” said Manziel. “He’s at the highest level. I’m still working my way up there.”
As he often does, Harper shone brightly with the extra attention of the evening. And although Stephen Strasburg ruled the day with his solid start in front of family and friends in his hometown, Harper found a way to steal a bit of the spotlight with a 432-foot home run to center field.
Highlights: 5.16.13
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5.16.13 – Nationals 6, Padres 2
Stat of the Game: Stephen Strasburg logged a career-high 8.0 innings in his first-ever start in his hometown of San Diego.
Under-the-Radar Performance: Adam LaRoche extended his career-high hitting streak to 13 games with a two-run home run in the fourth inning.
It Was Over When: Bryce Harper crushed an offering from Tyson Ross off the top of the batter’s eye in the eighth, providing the final margin.
What to Watch for: 5.16.13
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Washington Nationals (21-19) vs. San Diego Padres (18-21)
RHP Stephen Strasburg (1-5, 3.10) vs. RHP Edinson Volquez (3-3, 5.15)
The Nationals head south for the second stop on their three-city California tour as the open a four-game, weekend set with the San Diego Padres Thursday night at Petco Park. Stephen Strasburg makes his first-ever Major League start in his hometown city, where he also attended college at San Diego State University.
NATIONALS LINEUP:
1. Span CF
2. Lombardozzi 2B
3. Harper LF
4. Zimmerman 3B
5. LaRoche 1B
6. Desmond SS
7. Bernadina RF
8. Suzuki C
9. Strasburg RHP
GOING STREAKING
Adam LaRoche enters tonight’s action riding a 12-game hit streak, marking his career long and the longest hit streak by a Nationals player this season. During the stretch, which began on May 2, LaRoche has gone 16-for-41 (.390) with two doubles, a homer, five RBI, seven walks and six runs scored, posting a .469 OBP & .982 OPS. His hit streak, which has raised his average 85 points, began after hitting just .129 (11-for-85) in his initial 25 games this season.
FIRST THINGS FIRST
Washington is 16-2 when scoring first this season, compared to 5-17 when its opponent gets on the board first. The Nationals have been outscored 16-22 in the first frame this season, but have outscored their opponents 21-10 in the second inning.
RISP FACTOR
Washington’s offense has gone two consecutive contests without recording a knock with runners in scoring position, going 0-for-13 in those games. The Nationals have gone hitless in 14 straight at-bats with RISP, since Roger Bernadina’s sixth-inning single on Monday at Los Angeles. During the current five-game rough stretch (1-4 record), Washington has batted just .133 (6-for-45) with RISP.
Highlights: 5.15.13
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5.15.13 – Dodgers 3, Nationals 1
Stat of the Game: Adam LaRoche homered for Washington’s lone run, extending his hitting streak to a career-high 12 games.
Under-the-Radar Performance: Craig Stammen allowed just two hits over 3.0 scoreless innings of relief, striking out three without a walk.
It Was Over When: The Dodgers added an insurance run in the eighth to provide the final margin of victory.
What to Watch for: 5.15.13
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Washington Nationals (21-18) vs. Los Angeles Dodgers (16-22)
LHP Ross Detwiler (2-3, 2.53) vs. RHP Zack Greinke (1-0, 1.59)
Washington looks for a winning series to open its 10-game, three-city California road trip as the Nationals send southpaw Ross Detwiler against the recently reinstated Zack Greinke. Greinke has been out for four weeks following a broken collar bone, and allowed eight runs (three earned) in just 4.1 innings of work in his lone rehab start at High-A last week.
NATIONALS LINEUP:
1. Span CF
2. Lombardozzi LF
3. Zimmerman 3B
4. LaRoche 1B
5. Desmond SS
6. Ramos C
7. Espinosa 2B
8. Berndina RF
9. Detwiler LHP
DON’T WALK
Washington’s pitching staff has logged 20.0 consecutive innings without issuing a walk, just 8.0 innings shy of matching the longest such streak in MLB this season. The Nationals (‘05-present) record for consecutive innings without granting a walk is 29.0, accomplished over parts of four games from September 16-20 during the 2011 campaign.
POWER OUTAGE
Nationals pitchers have thrown 47.0 consecutive innings without surrendering a home run, a stretch that has spanned five+ contests. On the flipside, Washington’s batters have been held inside the yard for three straight games and look to avoid their first four-game homer drought since the 2011 season (five games without a home run from September 12-16).
IRREGULARITY
Ryan Zimmerman, Jayson Werth, Adam LaRoche, Bryce Harper, Danny Espinosa, Denard Span and Wilson Ramos have all missed time this season while dealing with injury or illness. Davey Johnson was last able to pen a lineup that included his standard starting eight (LaRoche 1B, Espinosa 2B, Desmond SS, Zimmerman 3B, Harper LF, Span CF, Werth RF, Ramos/Suzuki C) on April 14. Washington is 6-4 this season when Johnson’s standard starting eight play together.
A Piece of Living History
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There are few living legends in the game whose presence looms as large as Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully. The now 85-year-old has been the voice of the Dodgers for 64 years, dating back to their days in Brooklyn. He is a walking encyclopedia of baseball and cultural knowledge and always makes for a tremendously entertaining interview.
Scully sat down with Nationals radio man Charlie Slowes prior to Tuesday night’s game in Los Angeles. He told stories of Jackie Robinson and Branch Rickey, his start in broadcasting in Washington D.C., and discussed Bryce Harper’s collision Monday night.
“The only good thing about it is it knocked his beard off,” Scully mused, as Harper had to shave in order to receive his stitches.
Scully went to the clubhouse before the game Tuesday to see Harper, who seemed caught off guard to see him in Davey Johnson’s office. As Harper shook Scully’s and offered a customary pleasantry, Scully retorted with, “Well, how are you young man?” in reference to the play the night before. The two went on to chat for several minutes as Johnson made his away around the clubhouse.
“He’s such a fine young man and an outstanding player,” said Scully of Harper. “It’s none of my business, but I hope he stays clean shaven.”
Listen to the full interview below. The Nationals wrap their three-game set in Los Angeles tonight.
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